May/June 2011 Volume 1, Issue 5

Fort Collins Association www.ftcollinsarchery.com [email protected]

The President’s Corner INSIDE THIS ISSUE By Michel Majors The President‟s Corner 1

If you have been on the range or actively shooting History of Archery 2

Wednesday night 3D Leagues you have noticed vast FCAA Calendar of events 4 improvements this year. The most noticeable range Archers Paradox 3 enhancement has been the redesign of the field Archers Paradox-cont‟d 4 range, including position of target butts, the new concrete pads, and the use of Pacific Bow Butts (PBB’s) for all the targets. The FITA (metric) range will be completed this season as well, after the water table subsides. To begin the redesign, Andy Johnson and Jim built the Jim Hately, Range Director spearheaded the forms for the pads in advance, and using Jim’s complete transition to PBB’s in an effort to improve equipment, he and I set them on April 29. Andy also safety on the field course, extend ranges, and to built shelves in the garage for mid-sections to organize reduce cost and maintenance,. Along the river, we them and improve access to them. The club was no longer shoot back towards the bank where represented by 16 workers on April 30 to pour the shooters could be obscured behind the target by trees pads, and 21 on May 7 to set the bales. Jim also and bushes. The background is completely visible at worked with Dennis Hansen, Big Thompson all times with the river as the backdrop. Jim Bowhunters Maintenance Director to create the very extended the ranges for a couple of reasons. First, colorful target faces. Photos will be posted on the with the high-efficiency, fast bows used today website. shooters are regularly practicing at longer distances. At the Annual Membership Meeting in April we Second, the extended range dissipates some energy discussed the 3D shoot format. Having spent over and conserves the butts. Even with the initial $10,000 for targets this year, we’re striving for ways conversion cost for PBB’s, the anticipated to conserve them. Having 10 or 12 arrows in the operational cost will be reduced substantially. The target all at once was a huge wear factor, so we’re new butts will last two to three times as long as the now shooting one arrow per target. Increasing the excelsior bales that were replaced. The final benefit number of targets to 20 has increased our capacity, is that we don’t have to water these bales. The while also improving flow and reducing congestion. excelsiors required about 300 gallon per week We have finished every week well before dark, and during the hottest part of the summer. The water have had good crews for setup and take-down which kept the material pliable, tough, and tight. Then, at helps a lot. We also held the price at $5 but the end of the season we risked getting too much eliminated payback. We continue to post scores as water in the bale when it froze, creating a block of usual and will still recognize the winners. I hope the ice that robbed us of our arrow points until it thawed new format is working for you. All the comments in the spring. If we didn’t get enough water, arrows we’ve heard so far have been positive. would go completely through the target until we could replace it in the spring. Usually by that time it was totally shot-out, and it wouldn’t even hold water.

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History of Archery President’s Corner Cont’d By Wikipedia Thanks to Jim for leading this redesign. For all Decline, last uses, and survival of the volunteers – thanks for helping to improve our range! archery In a few weeks we will be at the FCAA The advent of firearms eventually rendered bows Jamboree at Jacks Gulch (June 17-19). Sign-up obsolete in warfare. Despite the high social status, after a Wednesday night shoot in the clubhouse, ongoing utility, and widespread pleasure of archery or call me to let me know you’re coming. Do in England, Korea, China, Japan, Turkey, Armenia, not miss this family outing with the club. It is a America, Egypt, and elsewhere, almost every great time! Remember—the club provides the culture that gained access to even early firearms meat at the Saturday night pot-luck. used them widely, to the relative neglect of archery. Early firearms were vastly inferior in rate-of-fire,

and were very susceptible to wet weather. However, The most noticeable range they had longer effective range and were tactically enhancement has been the redesign of superior in the common situation of soldiers the field range. shooting at each other from behind obstructions. They also required significantly less training to use properly, in particular penetrating steel amour without any need to develop special musculature. Armies equipped with guns could thus provide In order to be accurate, an arrow must superior firepower by sheer weight of numbers, and

have the correct stiffness, or "spine", highly-trained archers became obsolete on the battlefield.

"Have them bring as many guns as possible, for no Editor’s Note: other equipment is needed. Give strict orders that all men, even the samurai, carry guns." This past week-end I had the honors of —Asano Yukinaga, 1598 shooting the „Gamelines‟ 3-D Range, which was a „free‟ shoot to get the word out that In Eastern Europe and the Asian Steppe however they are back. If you remember last year archery continued to play an important part in there was a fire in Boulder which took warfare, although now restricted to mounted several sections of their range. They lost archery. The Ottoman Empire still fielded auxiliary money, time and pride. After some hard cavalry which was noted for its use of bows from work and some creative placements of horseback. This practice was continued by the targets, Gamelines Archery Club has come Ottoman subject nations, despite the Empire itself back with a strong “rise from the ashes” being a proponent of early firearms. The practice declined after the Crimean Khanate was finally attitude. These folks really did a great job to give you a „real life‟ experience of shooting. absorbed by Russia, however mounted archers I highly recommend you consider an remained in the Ottoman order of battle until the involvement with this club. Check them out: post 1826 reforms to the Ottoman Army. www.gamelinesarchery.com I‟ll be doing a full article on them in the next newsletter. Bob Radocy, you and your team have shown an outstanding display of creativity in a fun shoot with the challenge and simulation of a real hunt. Thanks…

Bowmen News - FCAA Newsletter – May-June 2011 Page 3

The sole exceptions may be the Comanches of The Archers Paradox North America, whose mounted archery was more effective than muzzle-loading guns. (Other Plains Indians fought mostly on foot, and usually found guns to be superior when they did so.) "After... about 1800, most Comanches began to discard muskets and pistols and to rely on their older weapons."[32] Repeating firearms, however, were superior in turn, and the Comanches adopted them when they could. Bows remained effective hunting weapons for skilled horse archers, used to some extent by all Native Americans on the Great Plains to hunt buffalo as long as there were buffalo to hunt. The last Comanche hunt was in 1878, and it failed for lack of buffalo.[33]

Figure 1 "The Archers Paradox" The last recorded use of bows, in an English battle, seems to have been a skirmish at Bridgenorth, in Diagram of the archer's paradox, showing what happens when arrows are [34] October 1642, during the English Civil . The incorrectly spined. most recent death in war from British archery was Not to be confused with Zeno's arrow paradox. probably in 1940, on the retreat to Dunkirk, when Jack Churchill who had brought his bows on active The term archer's paradox was coined by Robert P. Elmer service "was delighted to see his arrow strike the in the 1930s. The paradox refers to the phenomenon that in centre German in the left of the chest and penetrate order to strike the center of the target, the arrow must be his body".[35] In Ireland, Geoffrey Keating (c. 1569 - pointed slightly to the side of the target. Modern use of the c. 1644) mentions archery as having been practiced term has caused the interpretation of it to be corrupted and "down to a recent period within our own the bending of the arrow is often considered incorrectly to memory"[36] Archery continued in some areas that be archer's paradox. were subject to limitations on the ownership of In order to be accurate, an arrow must have the arms, such as the Scottish Highlands during the correct stiffness, or "spine", to flex out of the way of the repression that followed the decline of the Jacobite bow and return back to the correct path as it leaves the bow. cause, and the Cherokees after the Trail of Tears. Incorrect spine results in unpredictable contact between the The Tokugawa Shogunate severely limited the arrow and the bow, therefore unpredictable forces on the import and manufacture of guns, and encouraged arrow as it leaves the bow, and therefore reduced traditional martial skills among the samurai; accuracy.[1] Additionally, if an archer shoots several arrows towards the end of the Satsuma Rebellion in 1877, with different spines, even if they clear the bow they will be some rebels fell back on the use of bows and deflected on launch by different amounts and so will strike arrows. Archery remained an important part of the in different places. Competition archers therefore strive not examinations until 1894 in Korea and 1904 only for arrows that have a spine within a suitable range for in China. Ongoing use of bows and arrows in some their bow, but also for highly consistent spine within sets of African conflicts has been reported in the 21st arrows. century, and the Sentinelese still use bows as part of a lifestyle scarcely touched by outside contact. A Less powerful bows require arrows with less spine. Less remote group in Brazil, recently photographed from powerful bows have less effect in deforming the arrow as it the air, aimed bows at the aeroplane.[37] Bows and is accelerated (see "euler" buckling, case I) from the bow arrows saw considerable use in the 2007–2008 and the arrow must be "easier" to flex around the riser of Kenyan crisis. the bow before settling to its path. Conversely, powerful bows need stiffer arrows with more spine, as the bow will have a much greater bending effect on the arrow as it is accelerated. (cont’d on page 5)

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FCAA – Calendar of Events - 2011

Date Sponsor/Event Details April 23 FCAA Membership Fun $35 for 12-month family membership and City Range Pass, includes 3D fun shoot, lunch and annual Shoot meeting. Reg.8:30-9:45, Shotgun start 10:00. 3D course closes at 2:00. http://www.ftcollinsarchery.com/events/events.html#Wed3D May 4 FCAA Wednesday 3D $5/ 20 targets awards at end of session, Reg 5:15-6:15, 6:20 briefing, 6:30 shotgun start Hunting League http://www.ftcollinsarchery.com/events/events.html#Wed3D May 11 FCAA Wednesday 3D $5/ 20 targets awards at end of session, Reg 5:15-6:15, 6:20 briefing, 6:30 shotgun start Hunting League http://www.ftcollinsarchery.com/events/events.html#Wed3D May 18 FCAA Wednesday 3D $5/ 20 targets awards at end of session, Reg 5:15-6:15, 6:20 briefing, 6:30 shotgun start Hunting League http://www.ftcollinsarchery.com/events/events.html#Wed3D May 25 FCAA Wednesday 3D $5/ 20 targets awards at end of session, Reg 5:15-6:15, 6:20 briefing, 6:30 shotgun start Hunting League http://www.ftcollinsarchery.com/events/events.html#Wed3D June 1 FCAA Wednesday 3D $5/ 20 targets awards at end of session, Reg 5:15-6:15, 6:20 briefing, 6:30 shotgun start Hunting League http://www.ftcollinsarchery.com/events/events.html#Wed3D June 8 FCAA Wednesday 3D $5/ 20 targets awards at end of session, Reg 5:15-6:15, 6:20 briefing, 6:30 shotgun start Hunting League http://www.ftcollinsarchery.com/events/events.html#Wed3D June 15 FCAA Wednesday 3D $5/ 20 targets awards at end of session, Reg 5:15-6:15, 6:20 briefing, 6:30 shotgun start Hunting League http://www.ftcollinsarchery.com/events/events.html#Wed3D June 17-19 FCAA Jamboree Fun shoot! No fees, no scores, no payback. Membership shoot – join at the event ($35 per family). Camping Friday & Sat. included! Club sponsored dinner Sat night. 970-481-3903 http://www.ftcollinsarchery.com/events/events.html#FunShoot June 22 FCAA Wednesday 3D $5/ 20 targets awards at end of session, Reg 5:15-6:15, 6:20 briefing, 6:30 shotgun start Hunting League http://www.ftcollinsarchery.com/events/events.html#Wed3D June 29 FCAA Wednesday 3D $5/ 20 targets awards at end of session, Reg 5:15-6:15, 6:20 briefing, 6:30 shotgun start Hunting League http://www.ftcollinsarchery.com/events/events.html#Wed3D July 6 FCAA Wednesday 3D $5/ 20 targets awards at end of session, Reg 5:15-6:15, 6:20 briefing, 6:30 shotgun start Hunting League http://www.ftcollinsarchery.com/events/events.html#Wed3D July 9 6th Annual FCAA Learn to shoot a bow and arrow!! Free and open to the public. 8:00-2:00 Instruction provided. Equipment Archery Day provided -- or bring your own. Adults and children of all ages welcome. (970) 231-8348 http://www.ftcollinsarchery.com/events/events.html#ArcheryDay July 13 FCAA Wednesday 3D $5/ 20 targets awards at end of session, Reg 5:15-6:15, 6:20 briefing, 6:30 shotgun start Hunting League http://www.ftcollinsarchery.com/events/events.html#Wed3D July 20 FCAA Wednesday 3D $5/ 20 targets awards at end of session, Reg 5:15-6:15, 6:20 briefing, 6:30 shotgun start Hunting League http://www.ftcollinsarchery.com/events/events.html#Wed3D July 27 FCAA Wednesday 3D $5/ 20 targets awards at end of session, Reg 5:15-6:15, 6:20 briefing, 6:30 shotgun start Hunting League http://www.ftcollinsarchery.com/events/events.html#Wed3D August 3 FCAA Wednesday 3D $5/ 20 targets awards at end of session, Reg 5:15-6:15, 6:20 briefing, 6:30 shotgun start Hunting League http://www.ftcollinsarchery.com/events/events.html#Wed3D August 10 FCAA Wednesday 3D $5/ 20 targets awards at end of session, Reg 5:15-6:15, 6:20 briefing, 6:30 shotgun start Hunting League http://www.ftcollinsarchery.com/events/events.html#Wed3D August 17 FCAA Wednesday 3D $5/ 20 targets awards at end of session, Reg 5:15-6:15, 6:20 briefing, 6:30 shotgun start Hunting League http://www.ftcollinsarchery.com/events/events.html#Wed3D Nov 19 FCAA Turkey Shoot (day $10/ 30 targets – Payback is top 3 shooters will go home with a turkey for the holiday (more details to shoot-15 targets x2) follow)

Bowmen News - FCAA Newsletter – May-June 2011 Page 5

FCAA Board of Directors The archers paradox – cont’d

President: Michel Magers An arrow with too much spine for the bow will not flex and as the [email protected] string comes closer to the bow stave, the arrow will be forced off to 481-3903 the side. Too little spine, or flexion, will result in the arrow deforming

Vice President: too much and being propelled off to the other side of the target. In Matt Dworak extreme cases, the arrow may break before it can accelerate, which [email protected] 231-8348 can be a safety hazard.

Secretary: Frank Buck The measurement of "spine" has been standardized by the [email protected] American Archery Trade Association, formerly the Archery 215-8913 Manufacturer's Organization, and spine measurements may Treasurer: sometimes be specified as "AMO spine". The spine of an arrow shaft Rod Albers [email protected] is a measure of its stiffness. The AMO standard for measuring spine is 223-4649 to measure the deflection of the shaft at the midpoint of a 26-inch

Membership: (660 mm) span when placed under a load of 2 pounds-force (8.9 N). Marci Riddle The more deflection, the less stiff the shaft, and the lower its spine [email protected] measurement

Newsletter Editor: Frank Buck [email protected] 215-8913 “ n general, the industry has Youth Archery Director: I Brian Ficker done a poor job educating

Web Master: hunters in the critical areas that Stacey Litchfield determine which bow setup is [email protected] right for them.”

Range Master: Jim Hately

Archery history-cont’d Traditional archery remained in minority use for sport and for hunting in many areas long after its military disuse. In Turkey, its last revival for this purpose took place with the encouragement of Mahmud II in the 1820s, but the art, and that of constructing composite bows, fell out of use with the death of the last bowyer in the 1930s. The rest of the Middle East also lost the continuity of its archery tradition at this time. In Korea, the transformation from military training to healthy pastime was led by Emperor Gojong, and is the basis of a popular modern sport. Japanese continue to make and use their unique traditional equipment. Among the Cherokees, popular use of never entirely died out. The British have maintained a continuous tradition of use, with a major revival as an upper-class pursuit from about 1780-1840. In China, the improvement of firearms and other circumstances of 20th century China led to the demise of archery as a military and ritual practice, and for much of the 20th century only one traditional bow and arrow workshop remained. However, in the beginning of the 21st century, there has been revival in interest among craftsmen looking to construct bows and arrows, as well as in practicing technique in the traditional Chinese style. In modern times, mounted archery continues to be practiced in some Asian countries but is not used in international competition. Modern Hungarians have revived mounted archery as a competitive sport. Archery is the national sport of the Kingdom of Bhutan

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The Fort Collins Archery Association  We are a group of people united by an interest in archery.  Our membership includes both active bow-hunters and target archers who have never hunted.

 We maintain for the public the Fort Collins outdoor archery range on land owned by the City of Fort Collins Parks and Recreation Department.

We’re on the Web!  We work with local organizations and businesses to provide support for youth archery programs, sponsor Visit us at: benefit shoots and host competitions. www.ftcollinsarchery.com

Fort Collins Archery Association P.O. Box 270493 Fort Collins, CO 80527-0493